Mantis

Pages

Friday, January 15, 2016

Christmas Island medical cannabis

Christmas Island medical cannabis plan: community expresses concern

Plans to grow Australia's first commercial crop of medical cannabis at Christmas Island have met resistance from some locals, who fear that islanders won't see the financial benefits and drugs may end up in the hands of local youths. Medical cannabis plan "needs to be approved by the community": Christmas Island shire president Gordon "If medical cannabis is a crop that can be legally grown on Christmas Island then that needs to be approved by the community," Mr Thomson said.

Auscann established in 2014 homegrown medicinal cannabis

Auscann said that it was in the final stages of planning the trial planting which will include five varieties of cannabinoids sourced from leading Spanish company Phytoplant Research with which it has an exclusive partnership.

If the trial is successful, and federal laws are changed, Auscann will begin planting the first commercial crop for the domestic market in late 2016, managing director Dr Elaine Darby said

“We have carefully selected Christmas Island for its isolation, climate and security,” she said in a statement.

“In particular, we note that the amount of available daylight hours is critical to triggering cannabis plant flowering. Christmas Island experiences minimal changes to its daylight hours, so it is feasible that we could produce two crops each year.” Ms Darby said the company had also already begun to reach out to the 2000 locals on Christmas Island and was expecting their full support.

“If our commercial plans proceed as expected, we will create local employment and provide a vital boost to the local economy,” she said.

Auscann was established in 2014 and aims to produce homegrown medicinal cannabis for export to other countries and for the domestic market once proposed legislation passes.

Cannabis remains an illegal substance in Australia, but the federal government has flagged introducing a bill next year to legalise growing the plants for their medicinal uses